City Council denies Bama Wings, Fish and More request for beer, wine licenses

Wednesday

Jun 20, 2012 at 12:01 AM

TUSCALOOSA | After tabling a vote on alcohol license petitions for a West End business last week, the City Council returned Tuesday night to unanimously deny Bama Wings, Fish and More the right to sell beer and wine to its customers.

By Jason MortonStaff Writer

TUSCALOOSA | After tabling a vote on alcohol license petitions for a West End business last week, the City Council returned Tuesday night to unanimously deny Bama Wings, Fish and More the right to sell beer and wine to its customers.Council members based their votes in part on the comments from residents, many of whom turned out last week to voice opposition to the idea of selling alcohol close to two public schools.City Attorney Tim Nunnally also submitted into the record studies regarding the effects of alcohol on crime and a compilation of crime statistics within a 1⁄4-mile radius of the business’ address at 1509 Dinah Washington Ave.Councilman Bobby Howard, who represents the area as part of District 1, pointed to several of the local crime statistics as reasons that this area of the city did not need another establishment where alcohol could be purchased.“I feel that these are the things citizens in this area are keenly aware of ... and the (evidence of) the nightmare they have been living in,” Howard said.Council President Harrison Taylor said that granting the licenses, which would allow patrons to purchase beer and wine to be taken off-premises from the store, could create the temptation to try and obtain alcohol illegally among students at Central Elementary School and Westlawn Middle School.Before the vote, five residents took to the podium during a public hearing on the licenses to voice their opposition.The residents included Jerry Carter, acting president of the Tuscaloosa chapter of the NAACP, who said he “can’t see anything good” from granting the licenses, as well as Ethel Whitt of Moody Street, who said that the re-institution of a citywide alcohol ban would solve debates such as these.After the vote, business owner Ahmed El Samadey said he was undecided about whether to appeal council’s decision, but he said he believed it to have been made unfairly.“I don’t understand,” El Samadey said. “I think this was more of a show.“It was not done proper.”